From Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath
Queen’s Park – This October 29th, Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath demanded that the government stop the sell-off of Hydro One after the Financial Accountability Officer’s (FAO) Report demonstrated what New Democrats have been saying for months: The sell-off of Hydro One is a bad deal for the families and businesses of this province.
Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath
“The first independent analysis of this sell-off has been done and it clearly shows that this is a bad deal for Ontario families and businesses,” said Horwath. “The Premier (Kathleen Wynne) should follow the advice of the FAO and commit today to stopping the sell-off of Hydro One before this turns into another billion dollar Liberal boondoggle for the people of Ontario.” The FAO report demonstrates that the Premier’s promises that the sell-off would return $4 billion for transit and infrastructure are false and that the total could be billions of dollars less.
The report also clearly outlines that Ontario will be in worse long-term financial shape as it will lose between $444 and $487 million a year in foregone net revenues by 2025 as a direct result of the sell-off. “The Premier has been telling Ontarians that the sell-off will raise $4 billion for infrastructure and transit, but the FAO report shows that the sell-off could raise as little as 1.4 billion dollars – a fraction of what she has been promising,” said Horwath.
“At $4 billion this sell-off was unnecessary and a bad deal. At $1.4 billion it is ludicrous that the Premier would even consider it. It is gross incompetence if she cannot make up 0.1% of her budget without selling-off Hydro One.”
The FAO’s damning report is the first independent analysis of the Liberal sell-off of Hydro One, despite the Premier’s promises for an independent and transparent process. “Thanks to the FAO we have a chance to stop another Liberal boondoggle before it costs Ontario families and businesses billions of dollars,” said Horwath. “The Premier must commit today to stopping the sell-off of Hydro One before it is too late.”
A Footnote from Niagara At Large – As of this October 29th posting, the province’s Premier Kathleen Wynne said that despite the FAO report, her Liberal government is moving forward with the selling to private parties of Hydro One shares, which is expected to begin within a few weeks.
To view the Financial Accountability Office report click on – http://www.fao-on.org/en/Blog/Latest%20News%20and%20Publications/Hydro%20One%20Report .
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